With winds out of the North on Saturday and out of the NW on Sunday, conditions look pretty ideal for a sail from Flamingo State Park To Cape Sable, with a camp out on the Cape Saturday night. That would be a beam reach there and a broad reach back, with comfy (tail end of a cool front) camping conditions.

It's about a 12 mile sail each way, with nothing but blue skies, sea life, birds, mangroves and sand beaches.

Other AI/TI owners in the S FL region who are interested in doing some camping in the everglades should do this trip. It will be easy sailing with a straight-forward destination. Easy landing and launching.

11 am launch sounds fine. It takes me at least an hour to set up--probably more. I'm closer, so I will pick up the permit.

Fishing--hmmm? You might pick up a spanish mackeral trolling on the way out, but they are not the best eating--they make good fish soup. Occasionally you see a triple tail basking on the surface, but it might be hard to get close enough to catch one. Snook are closed because of the hit they took a year ago in the cold spell. Closed season on sea trout until Jan 1. That leaves reds. Maybe could pick one up casting from shore.

Keith, do you carry your wheels with you. They seem to be a space hog and maybe not necessary for dragging the boat up on the beach.

I haven't decided on whether to bring my bulky and heavy TentCot, which I should be able to strap to one of the tramps, or a light weight and easy to pack bivy. The cot arrangement keeps you off of the ground and farther away from those varmits you talked about. I'll probably go with the lighter option this time and sleep on the ground.

Given the cool weather, I may not even pack ice - just dry goods and wine. I'll try to keep things simple the first time out. I have a history of overpacking anyway.

Do you think I'll need my splash pants? They are more like dry pants, in that they have sealed socks and neoprene and suspenders for the body area - a (censored) to get relief from and maybe too hot during the day. I would bring a splash top, in any case.

Any other advice for packing?

As far as fishing goes, there is a cut at the east end of the lake behind Cape Sable. Tidal current runs out of there pretty fast and it looks like a good place to cast a lure. Are the snapper in the area just too small? It might be fun just to catch whatever goes after the bait that runs out of the lake.

Hope I have enough dry bags. I'm used to having dry bulk heads to load up. May end up having to go with some trash bag options.

Ted, I don’t take wheels. Once most of the gear & supplies are out of your boat, 2 people can move it up higher on the beach.

I have a couple tents. Since it will be cool (mid-50’s), I will use my sleeping bag. I use a variety of sleeping pads. My current favorite is an Exped Synmat 9 air mattress—it is a bit bulky and weighs 42 oz, but is very solidly built, and a real luxury to sleep on. I also have a Thermarest Neopad—another air mattress which only weighs 19 oz and packs real small—downside: it leaks.

I have a couple Thermarest self-inflating pads. I’ve used these for years, and they are quite adequate. Ted, I can bring one down to the launch if you need one. Sleeping on the ground (beach) is not a problem. The problem “critters” are mosquitoes and noseeums—they don’t care whether you are on the ground or not. With the cool weather, those flying critters will probably not be a problem. The one virtue of not being on the ground might be less sand in your abode.

Raccoons are a serious threat to your food. You can’t have any food in your tent, and all food not on your plate needs to be packed away in your boat by dark. Water in plastic bottles is also a target of raccoons. Raccoons do not bother water in Dromedary bags.

I’ll bring a few extra dry bags down, in case you need them. I have an extra Dromedary bag (2.5 gal), if you could use it.

I’m definitely bringing splash pants and my serious Kokatat hooded paddle jacket—I may not put them on, but I like to have them handy. The weather is supposed to be mild, but I like being comfortable. I hate small rogue waves that can douse you with cold water when you are lightly dressed.

Packing: small items that you don’t mind getting wet go in the rear hatch. Things you like to keep handy go in the middle hatch if they fit. Larger things go in the front hatch—that is usually the driest region, but most things should still be protected from water. There are 2 nice areas running back from the front hatch along each side of the boat. These can take a folding chair, if not too big. I have some long, narrow dry bags—I put my tent poles & other “long” things in these bags, and push them into these slots. My kitchen table fits in these long, narrow places very nicely. There is “tons” of room for plastic bottles of water or Dromedary bags under the rear cargo area and under the cockpit (below your legs).

I will bring my ice chest, but, it won’t be full, since this is just an overnighter. If you want, you can throw your stuff in it. The ice will be nice IF we catch fish.

Regarding fishing, the cut (Homestead canal) you refer to is about 2 mi east of our campsite. There is another much less obvious cut about a mile back. The Homestead canal is one of the best fishing spots in S FL, but it is usually staked out by power boaters all day long. I haven’t fished there in years. Given our limited time, I don’t think we will be able to make it back there for any real fishing. Snapper don’t hang out along the beaches. Snook, sea trout (out of season), and reds can be caught along the beaches. That will be our best bet.

Oh, yes, be sure to bring a folding chair. It is one of life’s pleasures when beach camping.

Thanks, Keith. I have a bulky pad that I can strap to the Tramps. The Exped Synmat 9 air mattress sounds like a more permanent solution. I'll look into ordering one of those for next time. Plastic water bottles should be fine if left in the boat. I may take you up on the use of some of your dry bags. I'm going to have to lower the boat from the rafters and practice loading it up to see how it goes.